I am planning on getting a new touring bike and I was planning on getting a 2010 Surly Long Haul Trucker($1100), but the bike store has a 2008 Trek 520 in my size on sale for $800.

How does the Trek 520 match up to the Surly LHT? Is it as good a bike, or should I stick with getting a new LHT? I've heard some complaints about the gearing, but that's replaceable. Are there any other problems with the Trek 520?

vB 4.0 search is still messed up. This link worked yesterday. Four 520 vs LHT hits were listed, one of them was the same as raybo refers to in post #9. And note that since I've edited this, this is now post #0. wtf?!

You will find many in both camps. I have a 520 and like it's ride better than the LHT. Also in my size the LHT does not come in 700c wheels. To some it is no big deal, but to me it was pretty much a deal killer from the start. Either though will serve you well. Buy which fits you best and the ride you prefer.

BTW I bought a NOS 2004 frameset and built it up. Fun and speced to my prefs.

Trek updated the gearing on the 520 starting in 2009. You are correct in that the 2008 will probably need some changes. Ask the shop how much they would charge to update the 2008 gearing to match the 2009.

How does the Trek 520 match up to the Surly LHT? Is it as good a bike, or should I stick with getting a new LHT? I've heard some complaints about the gearing, but that's replaceable. Are there any other problems with the Trek 520?

ride and decide, my $.02 is if you're riding unloaded most of the time the 520, if you're riding loaded down most of the time or want to ride with big tires the LHT. "as good as.." doesn't figure in, they're different and both good.

IMHO- ride both [if you can] - then decide.
For me, the 520 was a better balance of ride features [520 felt more like a road bike- LHT seemed more like a mtn bike], plus I liked the V brakes.
ps- I did modify the gearing from a triple to a 26/39 double and the cassette to an 11-34. I also put replaced the left bar end with a down tube shifter so I could mount a mirracycle mirror in the bar end.

Bikes: An old Raleigh that I use for everything and a Marinoni Sportivo

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A Trek 520 for 800$, it's a bargain. Here in Canada the 2010 model of Trek 520 is around 1600$. I had a LHT for a couple of years, used it for commuting, never got to touring fully loaded. A comfortable bike but a bit on the heavy side for my taste. Sold it last fall and I'm shopping for a new bike... If I could get my hands on a Trek 520 at a fair price i'd go for it, looks like a winner to me.

I believe if you check the geometry the 520 is more of a "Sport Touring" frame. It has shorter chain stays then the LHT. The long chain stays are why the LHT has the "Truck " comments. The 520 will feel more sporty but the short stays may give you heel strike issues if you plan on full loaded touring. If so the LHT would be the better choice.

Trek 520 is a fully-loaded-touring bike, not sport touring. True, the chainstays are one cm shorter than the LHT, but they are still 45cm, same as Bruce Gordon's large size tour bikes. I rode with a guy on a large 520, he was 6'3" with size 13 feet, Lone Peak P500 panniers, stock trek rack - not an issue for him.

The LHT will have a longer HT and if you are tall, this will help in getting your bars higher without having to use a crazy angle stem.
The LHT will accommodate much larger tires so if you plan on doing dirt roads or trails, that would be a deal killer for me for the 520.
The LHT has a slacker seat tube angle at least in the larger sizes. May be an issue if you have long thighs and use a B17.
The LHT has a much prettier fork!

I found the 520 fun to ride unloaded and it was a great shoulder season road bike when there was a lot of gravel on the roads. If you plan on staying mostly on the pavement, $800 is a bargain.

The 2008 Trek 520 with MTB gears arrived home today (from the local Surly dealer). So far it seems like a great bike. It fits well and was out on the roads this afternoon.
Since I am a woman, heel strike shouldn't be a problem.

How ironic; I was flat out told by the local Trek store that the 520 is not even made in my size (43/45 cm). They recommended the Specialized Tri-Cross or a Cannondale instead, neither of which fit me. The local Surly store didn't have any LHT's in my size to try out, but they did have the 2008 Trek 520 and were willing to order a LHT if I wanted it instead.

The 2008 Trek 520 with MTB gears arrived home today (from the local Surly dealer). So far it seems like a great bike. It fits well and was out on the roads this afternoon.
Since I am a woman, heel strike shouldn't be a problem.

How ironic; I was flat out told by the local Trek store that the 520 is not even made in my size (43/45 cm). They recommended the Specialized Tri-Cross or a Cannondale instead, neither of which fit me. The local Surly store didn't have any LHT's in my size to try out, but they did have the 2008 Trek 520 and were willing to order a LHT if I wanted it instead.

The 2008 Trek 520 with MTB gears arrived home today (from the local Surly dealer). So far it seems like a great bike. It fits well and was out on the roads this afternoon.
Since I am a woman, heel strike shouldn't be a problem.

How ironic; I was flat out told by the local Trek store that the 520 is not even made in my size (43/45 cm).

They recommended the Specialized Tri-Cross or a Cannondale instead, neither of which fit me. The local Surly store didn't have any LHT's in my size to try out, but they did have the 2008 Trek 520 and were willing to order a LHT if I wanted it instead.

I see you have made your decision. I was going to post that I would buy the 520 because of all the good things I have read from people on tour at crazyguy. The LHT is fine too, but a lot can be done with that saved cash.

Trek 520 is a tank, great for loaded touring. Swap out that stock Trek seat for a Brooks, get some fenders, etc. Love the bar end shifters. I do have trouble keeping up with the group on the rare occassion when I use it for group rides. I bought a new third ring as the stock granny isn't really a bailout gear. Huffing over any of the Shenandoah Mt passes was difficult.
Got mine new for $600.00 and change, a tad small but I can get down in the drops comfortably.